Zytiga has been shown to increase survival for an extra four months, and it is hoped that around 10,000 patients a year would benefit.
The European drugs watchdog yesterday recommended that it is used in Britain and across the continent, and it could be available by the end of September.
The pill, which was invented by British scientists, would be given to patients with aggressive forms of prostate cancer which cannot be treated with chemotherapy and other drugs.
It works by cutting off the tumour’s supply of the hormone testosterone, stopping it from growing.
Yesterday’s recommendation by the European Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use will now be considered by the European Commission, and a decision is expected within three months.
But if approved the drug, also known as abiraterone acetate, would not be immediately available on the NHS.
The Government watchdog NICE would consider its benefits before ruling whether it should be prescribed on the Health Service, and this could take several years.
In the meantime patients would have to pay for it privately or apply for funding from the Cancer Drugs Fund or their Primary Care Trust.
A trial involving almost 800 patients in 13 countries found those taking the drug combined with conventional steroid treatment survived for about 15 months, compared with 11 months on steroids alone.
It was so successful that the trial was abandoned and all patients put on Zytiga in the hope that it would improve their quality of life and extend survival.
Professor Johann de Bono from the Institute of Cancer Research, where the drug was invented, said: ‘We are thrilled that the regulator has recommended Zytiga be granted marketing approval throughout Europe.
‘Men with metastatic prostate cancer have very few treatment options available to them and new therapies such as this are desperately needed.
‘If the European Commission supports this positive opinion, it could make a huge difference to the 10,000 men diagnosed with aggressive late-stage forms of prostate cancer in the UK every year.’ Professor Alan Ashworth, chief executive of the ICR, said: ‘Since we first discovered this drug, the ICR, together with our partners, has worked relentlessly to develop abiraterone acetate into a well-tolerated, effective treatment for men with advanced prostate cancer.
‘It is highly exciting and satisfying to be so close to a decision that could mean thousands of men benefit from our work.’
Around 250,000 men in the UK are living with prostate cancer, with 37,000 new cases diagnosed each year.
It is the biggest cancer killer after lung cancer, with 10,000 men dying from the disease annually.
Official figures published this week showed that the numbers of men diagnosed with the illness had increased by 10 per cent in the last year.
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